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This document is the product of extensive research and discussion by the working group A Collective Effort: Workforce Development Solutions for the 21st Century Military Spouse. Hosted by Hiring Our Heroes, the first working group meeting was held on Tuesday, February 26, 2019, at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (1615 H Street NW); subsequent meetings were hosted at the same location on Friday, March 29, 2019; and Wednesday, May 22, 2019. Subcommittees of this working group continued to meet independently through January 27, 2020.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The working group would like to extend its genuine appreciation to Honorary Co-Chair Mrs. Karen Pence, Second Lady of the United States. We would also like to extend a special thanks to Patricia Baron, Association of the United States Army; Jim Beamesderfer, Prudential; Josie Beets, Mission License; Eric Eversole and Elizabeth O’Brien, Hiring Our Heroes; Vivian Greentree, Fiserv; Michael McDermott, Blackstone; Laura Schmiegel, Booz Allen Hamilton; and Ashish Vazirani, National Military Family Association, for cochairing A Collective Effort. Finally, we would like to thank the following organizations and individuals for attending our working group meetings and providing feedback.
WORKING GROUP CO-CHAIRS The Office of the Second Lady
Fiserv
Hiring Our Heroes
Mission License
Association of the United States Army
National Military Family Association
Blackstone
Prudential
Booz Allen Hamilton
Amazon
Edelman
Salesforce
Armed Services YMCA
Elizabeth Dole Foundation
U.S. Small Business Administration
Blue Star Families
Grant Thornton
Starbucks
Board of Veterans’ Appeals
Hilton
Student Veterans of America
Boeing
Microsoft
The Rosie Network
Brooke Goldberg Consulting, LLC
Military Family Advisory Network
USAA
Capital One
Military Spouse JD Network
USO
CarMax
MOAA
Virginia Values Veterans
Child Care Aware of America
NVTC
WWC
CNAS
Office of the Deputy Assistant
Wounded Warrior Project
Corie Weathers, LLC
Secretary of Defense for Military
Deloitte
Community & Family Policy
Mrs. Bonnie Amos
Department of Defense
Pentagon Federal Credit Union
Ms. Rosemary Williams
Department of Labor - VETS
Psych Armor Institute
Dog Tag Inc.
Purdue Global 3
BACKGROUND As 2017 drew to a close, the United States was celebrating the success of public and private organizations’ collective efforts to reduce the veteran unemployment rate by more than half ― from 8% in 2011 to 3.7% in 2017, the lowest point in almost two decades. It was during this time that the country began to shift its focus to a chronically unemployed population that remained in the grip of economic recession: military spouses. In the spirit of inclusivity, a military spouse is defined (outside the confines of federal entities) as a current or former partner of a service member whose career has been impacted by the service member’s commitment to the United States. According to Department of Defense demographic data, military spouses comprise a population that is 92% female. Military spouses face unemployment rates of 24%1 - 7.5 times higher than the current rate for all adult women.2 Compared to the national unemployment rate, the proportion of unemployed military spouses has also grown substantially, from three to nearly eight times higher than civilian counterparts. Female spouses of active duty service members, on average, generate 37% less income than civilian spouses.3 Even when considering education levels — military spouses, on average, have attained a higher level of education than their civilian peers — military spouses earn less than similar full-time civilian workers.4 The choice to be a military spouse appears to incur a financial penalty. Over the last few decades, a handful of private and public sector organizations have undertaken significant efforts to help military spouses as they search for meaningful careers. From detailed studies, to state licensing reforms, to employer partnerships, there has been no shortage of programs dedicated to eliminating the many employment challenges faced by military spouses.
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1
Defense Manpower Data Center. The 2017 Survey of Active Duty Spouses: Tabulation of Responses (DMDC Report No. 2018-006). Accessed at: https://download.militaryonesource.mil/12038/MOS/Surveys/2017-Survey-of-Active-Duty-Spouses-Overview-Briefing.pdf
2
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Labor Force Statistics. Accessed February 2020 at: https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf
3
The Council of Economic Advisers, Military Spouses in the Labor Market, May 2018. Accessed at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Military-Spouses-in-the-Labor-Market.pdf
4
Hiring Our Heroes. Military Spouses in the Workforce, June 2017. Accessed at: https://www.uschamberfoundation.org/sites/default/files/ Military Spouses in the Workplace.pdf
Military spouses face unemployment rates of 24% ― nearly eight times higher than the current rate of 3.2% for all adult women.
WORKING GROUP: FOCUS & GOALS What impact have these programs had? Has America removed the many roadblocks that prevent military spouses from obtaining and sustaining a career? What challenges continue to exist, and how do we collectively address those challenges? Finally, what is the next big idea to empower military spouses? As the country embraces workforce development solutions in the war for talent through alternative pathways to employment such as apprenticeships, fellowships, learn-and-earn opportunities, and internships, military spouses must be given access to those programs. Workforce training, with the opportunity to up-skill or reskill, is paramount to decreasing the staggering unemployment rate for military spouses. A Collective Effort joins private and public sector leaders to work together on the issue of military spouse unemployment and underemployment. The goals of this document are to identify ongoing challenges faced by military spouses, find actionable solutions, and raise awareness. The collaboration will not only strengthen our collective voices but also help to amplify our individual work. A Collective Effort identified four focus areas that needed to be addressed immediately in this first iteration of the working group: the 21st Century Military Spouse Workforce, Licensing and Credentialing, Entrepreneurship, and Childcare.
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SECTION 1
THE 21 CENTURY MILITARY SPOUSE WORKFORCE ST
Military spouses are a population that exists in a highly mobile environment due to the military’s operational tempo and career requirements for service members. The current landscape requires more in-depth research and data collection around the military spouse, taking into account career propensities, critical barriers to employment, and the full military spouse lifecycle during periods of employment and unemployment.
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FINDINGS Employers from Main Street to Wall Street are still working to understand the true value and utility of hiring military spouses into their workforce, how to attract them to career opportunities, and how to retain them once employed. Companies make a unique connection when they provide an opportunity for military spouses to self-identify during the application process. As a result, military spouses are more likely to feel comfortable selfidentifying, allowing companies to more effectively track military spouses in their workforce. It is imperative that military spouses chart a course for their own career options, leverage existing resources to determine career interests, and create a plan for their career journey. The military spouse population faces many factors that represent employment challenges which are outside of individual control. Families tied to military service will remain a highly mobile population for the foreseeable future. Companies cannot guarantee jobs or job security to spouses, even when they have made a commitment to military spouse hiring initiatives. These challenges and parameters necessitate a strategy that empowers spouses and employers to work with the existing environment rather than one that dictates the need for changes that are unlikely to come to fruition. The U.S. armed forces population (52%) is located in six states (California, Texas, North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, and Florida), with 51.2% of service members reported as being married.5 Companies, organizations, and local governments in these states have a unique opportunity to impact a high percentage of military families desiring a path to dual income. Creating state efforts to serve veterans and military spouses seeking employment, such as Virginia Values Veterans, to develop and implement long-term recruiting and hiring strategies at the local level will have immediate impact. Many companies are already taking steps to hire, train, and advocate for military spouses. The lessons learned from these experiences inform us that more external communication is necessary to adequately educate employers and raise awareness among military spouse communities.
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Department of Defense, 2017 Demographics: Profile of the Military Community, p.35. Accessed February 2020 at: https://download.militaryonesource.mil/12038/MOS/Reports/2017-demographics-report.pdf
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RECOMMENDATIONS
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR MILITARY SPOUSES
1. •
Identify and join professional networks aligned with career interests
•
Develop a realistic, long-term career plan that does not assume you will stay with the same company, or even the same job family
•
Attend military spouse hiring/networking events and come away from each with new connections— and follow up with those potential connections
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Consider utilizing a career coach offered through Military One Source
•
Tailor your job search •
Search for employers that say they are military spouse ready
•
Join local networks and attend spouse events with employers
•
Develop your “self-ID strategy” with a range of options for disclosure depending on your knowledge and impressions of the employer
START YOUR SEARCH HERE
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Association of United States Army
•
Military Spouse Employment Partnership
•
Hiring Our Heroes Military Spouse Employment Advisory Committee
•
Military Officers Association of America
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR EMPLOYERS WHO WANT TO HIRE MILITARY SPOUSES
2.
•
Brand your company as a military spouse-friendly employer •
Use “military ready” rather than “veteran ready” in corporate websites, recruiting materials, etc.
•
Create web pages inclusive of spouses in content and language
•
Fund/join partnerships and coalitions to support spouse hiring (MSEP, Hiring Our Heroes, Blue Star Families’ Spouseforce, etc.)
•
Develop a comprehensive communications and education campaign for employers and military spouses. The campaign must include practical suggestions for programs and plans of action. Employers can also advocate for government incentives for employers that would facilitate spouse employment, while calling for more research and data to inform future campaigns
•
Create avenues for military spouses to self-identify •
Form Military Spouse Affinity Groups, separate from veterans’ or women’s groups following the models created at Amazon, Booz Allen Hamilton, and Capital One
•
Allow spouses to self-identify in applications and candidate tracking. Best-in-class examples include Amazon and Hilton; both organizations track the spouse status of candidates and employees.
•
Make the business case internally •
Draft military spouse-friendly employer guidance (e.g. a how-to guide placed directly on company website) and share key points of contact for spouses (recruiting, HR, managers, etc.)
• •
Create an internal culture campaign led by company leadership
Put your business case into action •
Commit to Hiring Our Heroes’ “Hiring 100,000 Military Spouses” campaign and report results
•
Incorporate verbiage in job postings inviting military spouses to apply
•
Identify, cultivate, and leverage military spouse-friendly recruiters in your company to ensure hiring managers understand this hiring initiative. Eliminate the frozen middle.
•
Build recruiter training/slick sheets with tips for interviewing spouses and messaging about why spouses are good employees
•
Develop a communications campaign to create awareness/buy-in with hiring managers
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Use HR systems to tag military spouse candidates for preference
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Audit positions and create more remote opportunities
•
Create military spouse hiring targets for recruiters and hiring managers
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(Recommendations continued from page 9)
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR GOVERNMENT SUPPORT
3. •
Incentivize and encourage companies to hire military spouses •
Emphasize military spouse employment climate as condition of Base Realignment and Closure survival, unit reassignments, and investments for on-installation construction
•
•
Offer workforce development funding for military spouse programs
•
Expand Work Opportunity Tax Credit to cover military spouses
Create conditions that allow military spouses more mobility and flexibility •
Reform government contracting to allow for remote opportunities where appropriate
•
Expand broadband access on installations
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Allow work-from-home options in Status of Forces countries
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Leverage Executive Order 13832. The federal government is facing a mission-critical challenge of attracting the top talent to civil service. Nearly a quarter of the federal workforce is older than 55. Only 17% of federal workers are younger than 35, compared to 40% in the private sector6
•
Increase and refine knowledge of the challenges spouses face through research •
Educate employers about the business case for spouses
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Specify Department of Defense surveys focused on military spouse employment
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Advocate for Congressional research through any means necessary, to include a potential congressional commission on military spouse un- and underemployment
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Advocate for VA research on veteran spouse unemployment
•
Generate workforce development grants for military spouse fellowships
•
Assess options for tax incentives for employing military spouses who move overseas
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10
Office of Personnel Management. Federal Employment Report, September 2017. Accessed at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/ data-analysis-documentation/federal-employment-reports/reports-publications/full-time-permanent-age-distributions/
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SECTION 2
LICENSING & CREDENTIALING In the United States, more than 25% of U.S. workers now require a license to practice their professions, compared with only 5% who needed a license in the 1950s.7 The mobility of military families means military spouses face these professional and occupational licensing requirements more frequently than most. In the 2018 Blue Star Families Military Family Lifestyle Survey, 18% of active-duty spouses reported that they were not working currently because of licensing/certification issues.
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Brad Hershbein, David Boddy, and Melissa S. Kearney, “Nearly 30 Percent of Workers in the U.S. Need a License to Perform Their Job: It Is Time to Examine Occupational Licensing Practices,” Brookings Institution, January 27, 2015. Accessed at https://www.brookings.edu/blog/up12front/2015/01/27/nearly-30-percent-of-workers-in-the-u-s-need-a-license-to-perform-their-job-it-is-time-to-examine-occupational-licensing-practices/
FINDINGS In some states, legislation continues to create limitations and barriers for mobile military spouses whose career fields have professional licensing requirements. In 2010 and 2011, the Department of Defense State Liaison Office led efforts to enact legislation in state legislatures across the country to ease the licensing burden on military spouses. Unfortunately, these efforts suffered from inconsistent application and a lack of awareness among military spouses. However, since that time, the conversation around occupational licensing reform has seen new initiative, and momentum continues to build around workable licensing pathways for military spouses. In Arkansas, for example, the state legislature in 2017 passed Act 248, which required state boards and commissions to promulgate rules for temporary licensure, certification, or permitting of spouses of active duty service members.8 Also, the Texas Legislature passed and the Governor signed HB 1934 in 2017, allowing for temporary certification of military spouses with teaching credentials in another state so they can work as an educator while pursuing licensure in Texas.9 Some states are going a step further and considering legislation to exempt military spouses from licensure under certain conditions. In 2018, Utah enacted SB 227, which allows active duty service members and spouses to practice a number of professions or occupations in the state without requiring a distinct license in Utah, as long as they hold a current license in good standing in another state and pay all applicable fees.10 In 2019, Arizona became the first state in the country to broadly recognize out-of-state occupational licenses, accepting a license from any state to work in a licensed profession in the state. The language in the law specifically limits the provisions in the bill to individuals who either establish residence in the state or are married to an active duty service member and accompanying their spouse on their Permanent Change of Station to Arizona.11 Currently, bills are pending in the Iowa and Georgia legislatures that would continue the trend of accommodating the licensing needs of military spouses and making it easier to maintain a career. Such efforts should be vitally enhanced and supported at the state and federal level immediately.
8
Arkansas Legislature, “To Require State Boards And Commissions To Promulgate Rules For Temporary Licensure, Certification, Or Permitting Of Spouses Of Active Duty Service Members.” Accessed at: https://legiscan.com/AR/bill/HB1184/2017 9 Texas Legislature, “Relating to temporary certification of an educator from outside the state who is the spouse of an active duty military service member.” Accessed at: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/85R/billtext/html/HB01934F.HTM 10 Utah Military and Veterans Affairs, “Military Spouse Employment Licensing.” Accessed at https://veterans.utah.gov/military-spouseemployment-licensing/ 11 13 Arizona Legislature, “Occupational licensing; reciprocity.” Accessed at: https://www.azleg.gov/legtext/54leg/1R/laws/0055.pdf
In the United States, more than 25% of U.S. workers now require a license to practice their profession.
(Findings continued from page 13)
The federal government is positioned to continue to grow its impact on military spouse hiring directly and also by encouraging spouse hiring and career portability among federal and DoD contractors. One area with room for growth is the ability to integrate military spouses with licensing needs into federal service, where being licensed in one jurisdiction generally means you can work in federal services in any jurisdiction. In a formal capacity, the U.S. Army Office of the Judge Advocate General launched a Noncompetitive Military Spouse Attorney Placement Program. Between 2014 and 2019, more than 180 military spouse attorneys have been hired through the program. The benefit to the Army has been substantial: they are able to fill positions with qualified attorneys more quickly than the typical federal hiring process and also able to place a military spouse in sequential positions, enabling no breaks in employment due to Permanent Change of Station.12 In a similarly substantial capacity, the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (BVA) at the Department of Veterans Affairs provides military spouse attorneys with portable careers. BVA already offers its employees a broad telework policy based on certain conditions and timeframes. Military spouses who receive orders that displace them from BVA’s DC headquarters are permitted some flexibility with those conditions on a case-by-case basis.
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12
Military Spouse JD Network, “Q&A on the Army JAG Corps Military Spouse Hiring Program,” May 2019. Accessed at: https://www.msjdn. org/2019/05/q-a-with-lyndsay-lujan-on-the-army-jag-corps-military-spouse-attorney-hiring-program/
RECOMMENDATIONS 1.
EDUCATE STATES ON THE LIMITATIONS AND BARRIERS CREATED BY LEGISLATIVE LANGUAGE THAT DOES NOT REQUIRE BOARDS AND LICENSING BODIES TO ACCOMMODATE MOBILE MILITARY SPOUSE LICENSES.
A 2017 survey by the University of Minnesota Center for Research and Outreach (REACH) showed that even though many states have passed some sort of occupational and professional licensing accommodations for military spouses, many states use language that does not require boards and licensing bodies to adopt the best practices advocated for in the law. In many more states, the process to access military spouse licensing accommodations is unclear and not advertised by the regulatory board. Every state looking to implement legislation for military spouses in licensed occupations should ensure the licensing accommodation is: •
Culturally competent. The legislation and implementing board should understand the unique work histories of military spouses. Such individuals or bodies must understand that the military spouse employment culture often necessitates pulling employment histories from multiple states.
•
Timely. The legislation and implementing licensing board should allow for quick use by military spouses and should consider allowing a military spouse to apply in advance of arriving in the state to cut down on processing delays.
•
Equivalent. Military spouses should not be relegated to second class licensure status and should be given a license that allows them to work in their profession without onerous requirements that others do not have. Easy accommodation can be made to ensure the military spouse is complying with local regulations, whether that is additional continuing education programming or regular check-ins with the licensing body. Also, military spouses are not always interested in a permanent license in the state where they find themselves, and are sometimes only looking for a temporary, equivalent license to practice their profession while there due to their spouse’s military orders.
•
Inclusive. Families transitioning out of military service face employment challenges similar to those faced during a Permanent Change of Station, as the service member establishes a new career. However, most existing accommodations are limited to active duty spouses. During these transitions from activeduty, military spouses are best positioned to keep the family financially afloat by pursuing their chosen careers. By applying accommodations to spouses of service members who have transitioned out of the military within the last year, states can make these transitions more stable and entice transitioning military families to their state. 15
(Recommendations continued from page 15)
2.
ENGAGE WITH NATIONAL PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS TO SUPPORT THE LICENSING ACCOMMODATIONS AND EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES OF ACTIVE DUTY MILITARY SPOUSES.
Encourage organizations like the American Nurses Association, National Board of Certified Counselors, National Education Association, American Dental Hygienists Association, and others to educate their members on the challenges their military spouse professional peers face. These organizations’ visibility and ability to convene make them valuable additions to the discussion around the benefits of supporting and hiring military spouses, as well as garner the support of these organizations for interstate compacts and individual state legislative efforts to provide accommodations to military spouses. We recommend starting with professional organizations in the areas of physical therapy, psychology, counseling, emergency medical services, nursing, teaching, law, cosmetology, accounting, and engineering.
3.
SUPPORT PROGRAMS THAT CONNECT MILITARY SPOUSES WITH OPPORTUNITIES IN LICENSED PROFESSIONS.
Growing evidence shows that people are less likely to look to traditional institutions for guidance, and instead look to their peers. This is especially true for the millennial generation ― a growing percentage of our activeduty military and the future of our force. The 2018 Blue Star Families Military Family Lifestyle Survey shows military spouses feel the lowest sense of belonging and least connected to both local civilian and military communities. The comprehensive assessment of this data tells us spouses are identifying by their profession rather than as a military spouse. We recommend developing a grant program out of the Department of Labor that funds military family non-profit organizations to develop, in partnership with national professional organizations, groups that support the professional development of military spouses in licensed professions.
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4.
CONTINUE TO IMPROVE MILITARY SPOUSE HIRING BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT BY PROVIDING MORE RESOURCES TO MILITARY SPOUSES LOOKING FOR FEDERAL JOBS AND INCREASING THE VISIBILITY OF THE MILITARY SPOUSE HIRING AUTHORITY.
The U.S. government is the largest single employer in the nation. As such, the federal government has the opportunity to lead from the front by positioning itself as a strong hiring partner for military spouses. In 2018, the White House released “Executive Order 13832 Enhancing Noncompetitive Civil Service Appointments of Military Spouses” which aims to further improve opportunities for the hiring of military spouses in the federal government. The goal of the EO is to: •
Require reporting from agencies as to the number of positions listed under the military spouse hiring authority, the number of applications received under the military spouse hiring authority, and the number of military spouse hires under the hiring authority
•
Educate hiring managers on effective use of the military spouse hiring authority
•
Report to the President on the application of the EO and other improvements to military spouse hiring
In an example of an existing program with license flexibility that could be targeted toward military spouse licensed professionals, the Department of Veterans Affairs is successfully providing telehealth services to clients across the country. Under the current model, a VA provider, either VA-employed or VA-contracted, must hold at least one full, active, and current state license to be eligible to work for or with the VA. The provider can use his or her license to deliver in-person care and telehealth services through the Veterans Health Administration, and each VA provider can decide whether they want to provide VA telehealth services to veteran patients across state lines. Telehealth provides many benefits to underserved communities who would not otherwise have access to these crucial services, and military spouse licensed clinicians are ready to help.13 As these programs indicate, there is ample opportunity to drive substantive improvements in military spouse hiring that goes far beyond simply educating hiring managers. At a minimum: •
Hiring managers within the Department of Defense and relevant contractors should prioritize military spouse hires into positions that provide services to military families
•
Additionally, to aid military spouses in their federal job search and help spouses educate hiring managers, a cover sheet should be developed that a military spouse can include as part of an application that outlines the military spouse hiring authority, explains to hiring manager the benefits of the hiring authority, explains the process to use the hiring authority, and provides a contact at Office of Personnel Management or Department of Labor who can give technical assistance.
•
There should be a concerted effort to support the use of technology to provide military spouses with the opportunity to maintain their position while they PCS, including allowing counselors to provide telehealth services 13
Corie Weathers, “The Impact of Telehealth on Spouse Employment, Licensure & Mental Health Care for Military Families.” Accessed at: https://www.life-giver.org/advocacy/
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(Recommendations continued from page 17)
5.
MAKE MILITARY SPOUSE HIRING AND MILITARY SPOUSE JOB MOBILITY A CORE PART OF FEDERAL CONTRACTS.
Even when military spouses are able to find jobs with contractors, they are stymied by policies that do not allow the company to take into account the reality of how the service member’s military service negatively impacts their work history. One example of where contracts and their implementation are getting in the way of progress resides in the current process to become a telehealth provider through Tricare. Tricare military spouse mental health clinicians are culturally competent assets available to treat the mental health needs of military families through telemental health. However, internal policies and contract execution at Tricare have made it difficult for military spouses to provide these services as covered providers. Tricare’s application and claim system is stuck in a “brick and mortar” mentality, making it difficult for military spouse telemental health providers to enroll with a valid license in one state but a physical address in another.14 Private industry should make efforts to write contracts that take the unique licensing and employment needs of military spouses into consideration, and government contracting entities should use their purchasing power to require contracts to do the same.
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14
See note 13.
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SECTION 3
ENTREPRENEURSHIP For aspiring military spouse entrepreneurs, a confusing array of resources and limited access to funding inhibits military spouses from venturing into business ownership. Currently, insufficient data exists to understand the desire and interest among the military spouse community to launch their own business.
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FINDINGS An abundance of resources, coupled with limited access to capital, creates a challenging environment to navigate. Public and private organizations have established resources for veteran entrepreneurs, many of which are accessible to military spouses. While these resources provide useful tools, the end users often are unaware of the breadth of resources available. There is a perceived lack of financial literacy and planning resources afforded to interested military spouses, when in reality they are simply not appropriately messaged or advertised to this demographic. Further, potential entrepreneurs expressed difficulty in understanding the most appropriate time to leverage these tools. These ambitious business leaders are often uncertain about which tools would best suit each stage of their business. With a plethora of programs to utilize, the struggle is further compounded for entrepreneurs balancing a job while trying to establish a business. These hybrid entrepreneurs struggle to find time to fully research which providers would best match their business needs. Once they do find a resource provider they are interested in, it is often hard to them to gauge that provider’s quality. Military spouses would benefit from a score card rating the top five resources for capital as well as planning. In addition to an abundance of resources available for entrepreneurs to leverage, there is an educational gap about when and how much access to capital military spouses need on average. Oftentimes, access to capital of $5,000 is enough to help a military spouse launch a small business. Understanding when to access capital is one of the most difficult decisions for seasoned entrepreneurs; for those in the start-up phase or with limited networks, appropriately timing capital usage is even more challenging. Social capital is a must for building a sustainable business. To successfully start — and grow — a business, entrepreneurs need high social capital. As seen with navigating job opportunities, 70–80% of companies fill positions through referrals. Building a deep and varied network is crucial in the job search; similarly, that network is necessary to create a business. Due to frequent military relocations, military spouses often possess a large network; however, similar to veterans’ networks, the networks are somewhat myopic. Social capital is high within their military community, but low outside that community. High social capital is linked to better growth rates for businesses. Growing a local network requires significant time. For military spouses who relocate every 6 to 36 months, reducing that network creation time is demanding. Unlike their civilian counterparts who have more control over where they locate their business, military spouses face this unique challenge. 21
RECOMMENDATIONS 1.
ENCOURAGE SOCIAL CAPITAL GROWTH BY INTEGRATING RESOURCES
Non-profits, corporations, and public and private organizations play an important role. Stakeholders with existing programming, such as the Small Business Administration, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Coalition for Veteran Owned Business, Bunker Labs, Fiserv, Walmart, Disney, and Veteran Business Outreach Centers, should integrate opportunities for military spouse entrepreneurs. For example, they could request that Military One Source house relevant information as a comprehensive resource for military spouse entrepreneurs. In an effort to improve social capital, stakeholders should create a national calendar of events for military spouse and veteran entrepreneur-related meetings, accelerators, and incubators. This resource should be searchable based upon lifecycle (ideation, scale, etc.), industry, product or service, and geographic area. The calendar should also include opportunities to connect military spouse entrepreneurs with existing civilian programming.
2.
PUSH NATIONAL PROGRAMMING AND RESOURCES TO THE GRASSROOTS LEVEL
While no single repository exists capturing available resources for military spouse entrepreneurs, information sharing across various platforms would be ideal. Bringing together opportunities across the military spouse employment space would ensure that military spouse entrepreneurs receive the most current resources. Currently the Army allows military spouses to run small businesses from their military housing, as well as on installations. Secretaries of military departments across the services should follow the lead of the Army. Similar to most entrepreneurs, military spouses seek assistance within their local communities; ensuring that the programming opportunities are shared at the grassroots level will help military spouses more quickly access vital resources. For example The Rosie Network offers no-cost entrepreneurial training for military spouses through its Rosie Chapters nationwide. This program includes both online and in-class learning, mentoring and financial literacy counseling to spouses in all stages of business development, including remote work, independent contracting and self-employment. Creating community-level guides to drive military spouses to the right location and address the growing needs of scaling a company is a good place to start. Additionally, since the military spouse population is 92% female, programming should encourage female military spouses to certify as woman-owned businesses.
3.
EDUCATE BOTH LENDERS & MILITARY SPOUSE ENTREPRENEURS
Implicit in the business case for military spouses are qualitative attributes such as adaptability, resourcefulness, and diverse skillsets. Quantitatively, around 70% of military spouses possess more education and experience than their current position requires.15 During the past decade, organizations have begun to value military spouses as valuable workforce solutions; financial institutions and lenders should also learn the military spouse business case. Educating lenders on military spouses as viable entrepreneurs is a necessary next step. Efforts should be made to expand lending opportunities to military spouse entrepreneurs. Banks and credit unions could provide beneficial loan terms and unique programming. Companies can provide accelerated payment terms for small, diverse businesses, as well as incubator and accelerator programming. Efforts should be made to allow military spouses to qualify for the Work Opportunity Tax Credit.
4.
COLLECT MORE REFINED, RELEVANT DATA
More military spouse-centered research focused solely on entrepreneurship needs to be conducted. In largescale surveys and studies, entrepreneurship is often included only as a subsection, yielding limited data. Questions are narrow in scope, and surveys draw from small samples of veteran entrepreneurs and business owners. Within federal questionnaires, military spouses are largely excluded. According to the Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University and Blue Star Families’ most recent Military Family Lifestyle Survey, 20% of active duty spouses expressed interest in selfemployment or operating their own business. In 2020, various organizations will conduct military spouse entrepreneur research. Collaboration and transparency across organizations will ensure that efforts are streamlined to potentially avoid duplicative efforts. While establishing a brick and mortar business will remain challenging for active duty military spouses, there are ample opportunities for partners, organizations, and government entities to improve opportunities for military spouse entrepreneurs.
15
Hiring Our Heroes. Military Spouses in the Workforce, June 2017. Accessed at: https://www.uschamberfoundation.org/ sites/default/files/Military Spouses in the Workplace.pdf
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SECTION 4
CHILDCARE Within the conversation surrounding military spouse unemployment, childcare is often at the forefront of the discussion. The challenge of obtaining affordable, quality, accessible childcare is one that impacts all families, but it is felt particularly acutely in military families, who often face these challenges on a recurring basis. With each Permanent Change of Station, lack of access to quality, affordable childcare hinders the ability of military spouses to enter and/or return to the workforce.
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FINDINGS Access to affordable, quality childcare is both a military problem and a national problem. As of 2017, there were nearly 15 million children under the age of six with parents in the workforce. However, childcare in America is described as “ruinously expensive,” comparable to college tuition expenses for many families.16 According to the Center for American Progress, this financial burden, coupled with challenges of inaccessibility, resulted in nearly 2 million parents in 2016 leaving work, changing jobs, or turning down a job offer. While obtaining quality, affordable, accessible childcare is a common problem for many, military families may face this challenge more frequently due to consistent relocation and the high demand for care for children under age five (which constitute a significant portion of the 624,042 Department of Defense-connected children). In addition, the Institute for Veterans and Military Families Employment Research Series states active duty military spouses are more likely to have children at home when compared to their civilian counterparts (74% vs. 59%).17 Having young children, especially when a service member is deployed, is associated with decreased earnings and a higher likelihood of unemployment, further necessitating the need for quality, accessible childcare. Military childcare is a model for the nation. Despite the challenge of obtaining childcare, once care is secured, military families can expect some of the finest care in the nation. This is a result of the 1989 passage of the Military Child Care Act, which mandated and funded an overhaul of the childcare system. The act included significant improvements in quality through new childcare teacher training requirements, increased teacher pay, and a professional training curriculum for staff members. The MCCA also addressed affordability by basing tuition rates for families on total family income. This model increased childcare quality while simultaneously focusing on affordability.
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Katie Reilly and Belinda Luscombe, “The Child Care Crisis”, https://time.com/child-care-crisis/ Bradbard, D.A., Maury, R., Armstrong, N.A. (2016, July). The Force Behind the Force: A Business Case for Leveraging Military Spouse Talent (Employing Military Spouses, Paper No. 1). Syracuse, NY: Institute for Veterans and Military Families, Syracuse University.
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Although the Department of Defense is the provider of the nation’s largest employer-sponsored childcare system, challenges remain. As the nation’s military spouses toil against the challenge of unemployment, childcare is often at the forefront of the discussion. The challenge of obtaining affordable, quality, accessible childcare is one that military families face on a recurring basis. With each Permanent Change of Station, these families must continue to have access to quality, affordable childcare to enable military spouses to enter and/or return to the workforce. In some locations, particularly those with high concentrations of service members (such as Norfolk, San Diego, Honolulu, and San Antonio) as well as large metropolitan areas, wait lists for childcare can often average six months or more. This is especially true for families with very young children. Considering the staggering Department of Defense survey results annotated previously on military spouse unemployment,18 securing adequate childcare plays a vital role in addressing the spouse unemployment problem set. In areas with limited care availability within childcare facilities, many military families are driven toward home-based childcare options, but those may not meet the same rigorous quality standards. While Department of Defense Family Child Care (FCC) homes are heavily regulated, the number of FCC-certified homes has decreased significantly across all service branches in the last decade. Further, when the decreasing number of FCCs is combined with the perception that FCCs — which are well-regulated — do not offer the same level of quality care as that which is provided by child development centers, military families are (or feel as though they are) increasingly forced to look for care outside the installation gates, where costs may be higher, centers may not be at the same level of quality as military facilities, and fee assistance-eligible providers are scarce. 18
Julie Bogen “The Dismal Career Opportunities for Military Spouses” March 28, 2019, https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2019/03/majority-military-spouses-are-underemployed/585586/
As of 2017, there were nearly 15 million children under the age of six with parents in the workforce.
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RECOMMENDATIONS
1.
ADVOCACY: PURSUE LEGISLATION (FEDERAL AND STATE) THAT INCREASES ACCESS TO AFFORDABLE, QUALITY CHILDCARE.
Policymakers can help military families overcome their childcare challenges by championing bipartisan support to solve this national crisis and engaging the Bipartisan Policy Center in early childhood initiatives. In addition, legislators can protect the Child Tax Credit and military families’ ability to claim the credit for child and dependent care expenses (2441 Form), in turn helping military families building stronger financial foundations. Finally, policymakers can support licensure changes that benefit military spouses who provide childcare as well as the families who seek it. This can be done by engaging with the Defense State Liaison Office on the acceptance of a military Family Child Care (FCC) license in lieu of a state license when practicing as an FCC provider outside the installation. This approach will likely increase the quality of childcare for all Americans since Department of Defense requirements exceed state requirements. This can be coupled with efforts to explore reciprocity of licensure when childcare providers move from state to state. Military family support organizations and partners have a role to play as well. They can encourage additional childcare spaces by leveraging relationships with communities and employers by using targeted advocacy to educate them about the benefits of employer-sponsored childcare. The subcommittee on childcare’s key takeaways also led to opportunities for the Department of Defense to explore dependent care flexible spending accounts for active duty service members and expand the fee assistance program, both of which will support military families who need to seek childcare outside the gates of their installation due long waitlists and minimal options.
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2.
DEVELOP PARTNERSHIPS AND INCENTIVES.
There are many existing partnerships and potential partnerships that can support military family childcare needs. By highlighting examples of these partnerships, policymakers, partners, and supporters can create innovative solutions to childcare challenges. Examples include highlighting public/private partnerships that are creating childcare solutions and exploring small business, community, and military co-ops. One such partnership, developed by Care.com, provides education and training on childcare business infrastructure, which can teach military spouses how to provide this service, in turn increasing options for military families seeking care and providing an additional employment opportunity for these spouses. Another example includes Montessori-certified schools, which are pushing their acquisition strategy to areas near military installations that have high wait lists. They currently have six accredited centers in Northern Virginia and are poised to apply to Child Care Aware of America to be a part of the fee assistance program. Beyond highlighting partnerships, the Department of Defense can take further steps to encourage military spouses to serve as Family Child Care providers by creating incentives for these roles. Looking to childcare development centers, one additional step that can be taken is to increase compensation packages for military childcare center staff to onboard and retain talent.
3.
INCREASE EDUCATION AND PUBLIC AWARENESS.
Policymakers, community partners, and military family support services can further assist military families experiencing childcare challenges by educating military spouses about benefits packages, to include childcare options, so that when they negotiate with prospective employers, they add these asks to their total compensation negotiations. Turning once more to the Department of Defense, working with partners to offer a “Military Child Care 101” course may strengthen both consumer (parent) and provider awareness. Highlighting federally-regulated care providers, from child development centers to FCC homes, can help families identify and evaluate available options. For example, the U.S. Coast Guard recently launched a childcare pilot program that offers support to parents in two ways: Part 1 – consumer education specific to seeking and obtaining adequate childcare; and Part 2 – provider education specific to the rules and regulations of the state and local area.
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Military spouses continue to face staggering rates of unemployment, hovering continually at approximately eight times that of their civilian counterparts. Adding to this bleak reality, military families often find themselves on the losing end of a never-ending battle to obtain quality, affordable, accessible childcare for their young children. Policymakers, partners, and military support programs play a vital role in helping military families overcome their childcare challenges, and in turn, providing increased employment opportunities for military spouses. From championing legislation to highlighting public-private partnerships and leveraging relationships while educating through targeted advocacy, each of these key players has a job to do. While lessening the burden of finding adequate childcare will not happen overnight, developing partnerships to keep this conversation at the forefront and using the current military childcare system foundation can lead to solutions that will help military spouses return to the workforce and young military families secure the quality, affordable, accessible childcare they need to continue serving this country.
With each Permanent Change of Station, lack of childcare options hinder the ability of military spouses to enter and/or return to the workforce, with lengthy childcare waitlists (often averaging 6 months or more) becoming the norm in military family households across the country.
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CONCLUSION Military spouses face an unemployment crisis that has challenged this population for decades. The leaders in public, private, and non-profit sectors must continue to partner and address military spouse employment issues and continue to create collaborative solutions. Dual-income families are part of American life, and our military families require that same access and opportunity for economic stability. The employment challenges identified in A Collective Effort impact not only the stability of our military families but also our national security, as families drive the decision-making process for a military member to remain in service. Common themes of recommendations from the subcommittees of the 21st Century Military Spouse Workforce, Licensing and Credentialing, Entrepreneurship, and Childcare include creating a comprehensive public awareness and education campaign, opportunities for incentives for hiring military spouses, and requirements for additional data. A Collective Effort lays the groundwork to continue a swell of collaboration as we turn an eye toward addressing additional challenges facing military spouses seeking a path to economic opportunity. Future collaborative efforts should address problems not covered in this study, such as the impact of Status of Forces Agreements on military spouse unemployment, economic opportunities around our rural installations, health and wellness of our military spouses during periods of employment and unemployment, and interstate compacts and individual state legislative efforts to provide accommodations to military spouses. As a country we must continue to remove the burden of regulation that can obstruct the entry into and hamper the success of military spouses in the workforce.
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HiringOurHeroes.org
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